REVIEW: Elizabeth of East Hampton by Audrey Bellezza & Emily Harding

In Elizabeth of East Hampton by Audrey Bellezza & Emily Harding, Elizabeth “Lizzy” Bennet should be gearing up to finish her master’s degree at Columbia this fall but instead she’s running the family bakery in her hometown of East Hampton. Again. Even though it irks her to have everything fall on her shoulders, Lizzy can’t imagine not pitching in after her father’s stroke. Thankfully, he’s on the mend. Not thankfully, it’s a slow process, meaning she’s not sure when she’ll be free to move forward with her plans. She certainly didn’t see herself getting coerced this summer by her quiet sister Jane and Jane’s new beau, Charlie Pierce, to hang out with his snobby friend, Will Darcy. Will makes it clear he’s too good for the likes of Lizzy and her middle-class family. And she makes it known that he’s nowhere on her radar–even if the sight of him makes her stomach flutter.

“I know you and Charlie have been trying to get us together, but it’s not happening. The guy can’t stand me.”
“Isn’t that how all the classic love stories start?”
“This isn’t a classic love story, Jane,” Lizzy groaned. “No one is wandering over the moors at dawn to propose. This is a guy who has never smiled in his life and wears oxford shirts to the Lodge. He’s probably a psychopath.”

From the moment Will sets eyes on Elizabeth, she proves to be a distraction. His usually focused mind, constantly solving problems no one else wants to handle and finding ways to care for his friends, is in constant chaos while in East Hampton. Will isn’t sure what to think of Lizzy’s raucous family–other than that she’s lucky to still have them in her life, after losing his own parents a few years ago. But it’s more than that. He admits he’s attracted to her. The fact that he tries to find reasons to visit Lizzy or that he even wonders what she’d think of the wave he just surfed is alarming. Will is used to being independent. So, the thought of not only admitting his feelings but also *acting* on them has him rattled. But as he and Lizzy take care of everyone around them and they spend more time together, he knows it’s only a matter of time until he caves and confesses his admiration for the spunky redhead.

“You distract me so I can’t think straight. I’m not even supposed to be here right now. I should be in the city, dealing with work, but instead I’m here. With you. There are a thousand other things I need to be thinking about every day, but all I think about is you.”

ELIZABETH OF EAST HAMPTON put a modern spin on Jane Austen’s beloved Pride and Prejudice while keeping all of the wit, charm, and enemies-to-lovers goodness readers adore.

‘He had moved from snob to decent human being, and she wasn’t sure how to react. It was easier when she thought she hated him. Now, it felt like they were almost friends.’

I’ve read several retellings of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice in the past couple of years, and I have to say that authors Audrey Bellezza & Emily Harding did a nice job of keeping the overall feel and basic storyline intact while making ELIZABETH OF EAST HAMPTON completely contemporary. Even the choice of careers–or aspirations of careers in some cases–for the characters fit their persona from the original and in modern day: opinionated Lizzy was on her way to being a current affairs journalist; kind, quiet Jane was an elementary school teacher (how perfect, right?); Lydia was becoming a social media influencer; Kitty, a budding businesswoman; and Mary was a social activist. Even Mr. and Mrs. Bennet had a similar type of relationship and personalities without feeling like this was merely a rewrite of the classic.

As sweet and lovely as the subplot romance between Jane and Will Darcy’s best friend Charlie Pierce was, it was the tension-filled attraction and witty bickering between Lizzy and Will that (to me) stole the show. He was just as misunderstood as his counterpart Fitzwilliam was back in 1813, coming across as smug, proud, protective, and a bit of a jerk. And Lizzy was every bit as outspoken, at times blunt, and intelligent as Elizabeth was. Seeing it in today’s setting, as their tenuous relationship grew while in picturesque East Hampton, it was the perfect place for Lizzy and Will’s chemistry to take over and bring them closer. I laughed and gasped at their entertaining interactions. I chuckled and rolled my eyes at the interference of Lizzy’s family and Will’s friends each time they butted in. And I cheered on our couple to finally get it together. Which, they did, of course, in their own unique way.

QOTD: Would you prefer a summer getaway to a city or beachside?

Book Info:

Publication: Published: August 6th, 2024 | Gallery Books | For the Love of Austen #2

It’s a truth universally acknowledged—well, by Elizabeth Bennet anyway—that there’s nothing worse than summer in the Hamptons. She should know: she’s lived out there her whole life. Every June, her hometown on the edge of Long Island is inundated with rich Manhattanites who party until dawn and then disappear by September. And after twenty-five years, Lizzy wants to leave, too.

But after putting her own dreams on hold to help save her family’s failing bakery, she’s still surfing the same beach every morning and waiting for something, anything, to change. She’s not holding her breath though, not even when her sister starts flirting with the hot new bachelor in town, Charlie Pierce, and he introduces Lizzy to his even hotter friend.

Will Darcy is everything Lizzy Bennet is not. Aloof, arrogant…and rich. Of course, he’s never cared about money. In fact, it’s number one on his long list of things that irk him. Number two? His friend Charlie’s insistence on setting him up with his new girlfriend’s sharp-tongued sister. Lizzy Bennet is all wrong for him, from her money-hungry family to her uncanny ability to speak to him as bluntly as he does everyone else. But then maybe that’s why he can’t stop thinking about her.

Lizzy is sure Will hates everybody. He thinks she willfully misunderstands them. Yet, just as they strike an uneasy truce, mistakes threaten Charlie and Jane’s romance, with Will and Lizzy caught in the undertow. Between a hurricane and a hypocritical aunt, a drunken voicemail and a deceptive party promoter, the two must sift through the gossip and lies to protect the happiness of everyone they love—even if it means sacrificing their own. But when the truth also forces them to see each other in an entirely new light, they must swallow their pride to learn that love is a lot like surfing: sometimes the only way to survive is to let yourself fall.